Abstract
BackgroundClinical and experimental evidence demonstrates that sleep and epilepsy reciprocally affect each other. Previous studies indicated that epilepsy alters sleep homeostasis; in contrast, sleep disturbance deteriorates epilepsy. If a therapy possesses both epilepsy suppression and sleep improvement, it would be the priority choice for seizure control. Effects of acupuncture of Feng-Chi (GB20) acupoints on epilepsy suppression and insomnia treatment have been documented in the ancient Chinese literature, Lingshu Jing (Classic of the Miraculous Pivot). Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints on sleep disruptions in rats with focal epilepsy.ResultsOur result indicates that administration of pilocarpine into the left central nucleus of amygdala (CeA) induced focal epilepsy and decreased both rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM (NREM) sleep. High-frequency (100 Hz) EA stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints, in which a 30-min EA stimulation was performed before the dark period of the light:dark cycle in three consecutive days, further deteriorated pilocarpine-induced sleep disruptions. The EA-induced exacerbation of sleep disruption was blocked by microinjection of naloxone, μ- (naloxonazine), κ- (nor-binaltorphimine) or δ-receptor antagonists (natrindole) into the CeA, suggesting the involvement of amygdaloid opioid receptors.ConclusionThe present study suggests that high-frequency (100 Hz) EA stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints exhibits no benefit in improving pilocarpine-induced sleep disruptions; in contrast, EA further deteriorated sleep disturbances. Opioid receptors in the CeA mediated EA-induced exacerbation of sleep disruptions in epileptic rats.
Highlights
Clinical and experimental evidence demonstrates that sleep and epilepsy reciprocally affect each other
We further compared the values obtained from rats received 100 Hz EA of Feng-Chi acupoints with that acquired from undisturbed baseline during the hours of 5-12 of the dark period, and found there was no statistically significant changes in both NREM sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep (Figure 2B & 2E)
There was no change, except that the sleep suppression caused by ketamine during the first 4-h postadministration, in the sleep-wake activity when rats received the sham EA stimulation, which is consistent with our previous results [11,30]
Summary
Clinical and experimental evidence demonstrates that sleep and epilepsy reciprocally affect each other. This study was designed to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) stimulation of bilateral Feng-Chi acupoints on sleep disruptions in rats with focal epilepsy. Previous studies have demonstrated that EA stimulation of bilateral Anmian (EX17) acupoints enhances sleep through the activation of vagus nerve, which subsequently activates opioid receptors in the nucleus of tractus solitarius (NTS) [10,11]. Stimulation of Feng-Chi acupoints may activate vagus nerve and subsequently modify the opioid receptors in the amygdala to achieve its effect in the sleep-wake regulation. This current study was designed to elucidate the effect of highfrequency (100 Hz) EA stimulation of Feng-Chi acupoints in the sleep alterations induced by the amygdaloid focal epilepsy
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